


Detective Prince

by sinnamon_nerd



Series: Fate Decrees [4]
Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: Gen, Sibling AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-11
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-12-09 02:48:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20987561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinnamon_nerd/pseuds/sinnamon_nerd
Summary: Naoto transitions from a bright-eyed little girl to a Detective Prince.





	Detective Prince

Naoto looked up at the TV curiously. It was off but had her full attention nonetheless. She knocked her little fist against the glass twice before turning to her mother who was picking up her toys.

“Mama?” she called, brows furrowed in confusion. “How do the people fit in the TV? Where do they go when we’re not watching?”

The little girl pouted when Mama chuckled and sat her on her lap. “When we watch TV, what we see is actually a projection of something that’s been filmed. There are no actual people inside our TV,” Mama explained as she tied up Naoto’s hair in a ponytail.

“P-prodshekton?” Naoto repeated the word with some difficulty, it dancing around unfamiliarly on her tongue.

“Pro-jec-tion,” Mama corrected. “It’s when you see images on a screen, like how the shows you watch appear on TV.”

Naoto nodded, only sort of getting it. Either way, she learned something new that day.

“Jinkies!” Little Naoto exclaimed, holding on to Kou’s slightly larger hand. “Mae-chan’s disappeared. What should we do?” They were role-playing Spoopy-Doo, Mae-chan being one of Naoto’s dolls.

Kou started shaking. “G-gee, I-I don’t know, Nao-chan,” he faked his terror. “She could have been t-taken by the g-g-g-ghost!”

“We can’t just leave her be!” She stomped her foot, pouting before grinning as if an idea had come to her. She stuck her hand into her skirt pocket, fishing out a bit of candy. “I’ll give you a Spoopy Treat if you help me!”

Kou snatched the bonbon from her hands, stuffed it in his mouth and patted his small chest. “Let’s go find Mae-chan!”

They snuck around their house, pretending it was a dungeon. They checked around corners, inside their rooms, even their big brother’s room, but there was no sight of Mae-chan. Naoto was getting annoyed at how good their enemy was at hiding, however there was only one more room to check and she was sure Mae-chan would be in it.

Kou already had his hand on the doorknob of their parents’ bedroom when she stopped him. “Wait,” she exclaimed. “We need a plan,” she hissed at him, wary of anyone who might hear them.

The older boy nodded and they spent the next two minutes discussing their gameplan. Naoto would come in first to distract the ghost, then Kou would swoop in and take it down. After going through the plan one more time, the pair of siblings nodded to each other and Kou gave way for Naoto to enter the room.

It was dark inside, light from the hallway seeping in and illuminating the room. From the bed, a figure covered in a white sheet rose.

“Who dares disturb my slumber?” the ghost spoke in a boy’s voice.

Naoto pointed a finger at it. “Give Mae-chan back right now!”

The ghost laughed darkly. “You’ll have to beat me first!” It jumped off the bed, the still on him and Naoto shrieking. Just as he regained his balance, Kou came rushing through the door and tackled it to the ground.

Then, the actual attack began. Kou began tickling the ghost until the latter was in a fit of uncontrollable laughter. Finally defeated, Naoto retrieved her doll and unmasked the kidnapper. It was their big brother all along.

“And I would have gotten away with it too if it wasn’t for you meddling kids!”

Naoto’s hands firmly gripped the handles of her grandfather’s wheelchair, a solemn look on her face. A body guard held an umbrella over them as they stood in front of her parent’s grave. Yet again, she’d lost parental figures. Yet again, Death has taken from her.

Her grandfather placed his left hand over her right. She was crying silent tears and shaking slightly.

She hadn’t even been able to thank them for all they’ve done for her.

She was thirteen when she decided to cut her hair.

The nonstop comments she kept hearing from some of the staff around the mansion had finally gotten to her. Not only that, but those goddamn cops just wouldn’t take her suggestions seriously just because she was a “just a kid”. She’d simply had enough.

If it was a male-dominated society she would penetrate, then so be it she would.

Even if she had to pretend to be a guy

“Naoto,” her grandfather called her to his bedside.

“Yes, grandfather?” she spoke in a way that made her voice deeper than it really was. The old man frowned at that but said nothing otherwise, proceeding to his point.

“You are heading to Port Island, yes?”

She nodded. “That’s right. Will you be alright while I am gone?”

The old man chuckled. “Oh don’t worry about me… There’s something about that place that has been bothering me for a while, I finally know why…”

Naoto blinked in curiosity. “What is it?”

“That is the place where your parents adopted you.”

“What?!” she exclaimed, pitch rising.

He nodded. “I believe you will find something as to your roots if you go to the orphanage there.”

Naoto cleared her throat. “I see. I’ll make sure to keep that in mind.” With that, she exited the room.

And keep it in mind she did. Her first order of business upon arrival was to find the orphanage. She found it in backstreets of the station of the artificial island. There was a short conversation between her and a lady in her late fifties. Naoto had barely managed to introduce herself when the lady hugged her.

“Naoto-chan! Look how you’ve grown! I couldn’t even recognize you! You do look like your brothers, though,” the lady exclaimed thoughtfully. “Why did you cut your hair? It was so long and beautiful- Oh! That reminds me!” She turned away, taking out an envelope from her office desk and handed it to her. “Your big brother, Minato, dropped by here a few years ago and left this for you. He didn’t look too great, like he could pass out any second. Haven’t heard from him since.”

Overwhelmed that this lady knew so much about her, Naoto could barely stammer out a “Thank you” before leaving.

She had to put off reading the letter until the train ride back from that nonsensical King’s Game _they_ had her take part in.

With a deep sigh, she began reading.

_February 3, 2010_

_Dear Naoto,_

_You might be wondering who I am, so let me properly introduce myself. My name is Minato. I am your eldest brother. Our family name used to be Kitagawa, but I got adopted by our aunt and hence I became an Arisato. Coming after me is Kou who now goes by the last name Ichijo, then comes you, and then our little Yusuke. Our parents were Miina and Takeshi Kitagawa. Sadly, our father passed away in a car accident and our mother died of illness after you and Kou were adopted._

_You must also be wondering why I’m writing to you now after all this time. Well, the truth is, I too am currently ill and I know I won’t be lasting any longer, so I thought I could at least leave something behind for you. I hope you’ve had a good life, Naoto. I hope you’re still bright-eyed and curious. I hope you still take care of your beautiful hair. I hope some boy hasn’t shattered your heart – I would rise up from my grave if that’s happened. And, I hope you’re always smiling, just like when we were kids. _

_With all the love I can give,_

_Your big brother_ _Minato._

She didn’t know when, but at some point she’d started crying. Quickly, she wiped her tears and tucked the letter in her pocket. Opting to check the other paper in the envelope when she was in solitude.

The least she could was to pay her respects.

By the time she was climbing the steps to the local shrine, there was young man leaving whom she thought looked quite a bit like her. They exchanged glances, their eyes parting as soon as they met, and passed each other without a word.

**Author's Note:**

> I FINALLY got around to posting the next part of this series. Hopefully, it's as impactful as the rest. There's one more part to this. Look forward to that! :D


End file.
